Edexcel IGCSE Geography Chapter 1 - Pearson Schools

Agriculture●●●Liquid from farm silage and slurry from farm animals enters riversFertilisers and pesticides seep into the groundwaterDeforestation – run off carries soil and silt into rivers, with serious effects onaquatic life and humans who drink the waterIndustry●●●Taking cooling water for an electric power station from a river and returning itto the source at a higher temperature upsets river ecosystemsSpillages from industrial plants such as oil refineriesWorking of metallic minerals and the heavy use of water in processing ore −toxic substances eventually find their way into riversDomestic purposes●●●The discharge of untreated sewage from houses – even treated sewage pollutesUse of river for washing clothes and bathingEmptying highly chlorinated water from swimming poolsAccess to safe waterSafe water is water that is safe for human consumption. It is not contaminated bypollutants and is free from disease. It is estimated that more than 1 billion people inthe world do not have access to safe water.Can you think of ways in whichrecreation and tourism pollute water?Chapter 1: River environments% of populationwho have accessto safe water90%No dataFigure 1.31: Access to safe waterFigure 1.31 shows that the countries with the lowest access to clean water (i.e. lessthan 50% of the population enjoying safe water) are mainly located in Africa andin parts of southern Asia. As a consequence, many people suffer ill health and anearly death. In most HICs, more than 90% of the population have access to cleanwater. It is surprising that the map shows there is no data about clean water for anumber of European countries.Describe the main features shown byFigure 1.31.23